A continuing demand exists for a simple, inexpensive, mechanically adjustable floor vent device which can be used to influence the direction of an air stream exiting a floor vent, as well as to regulate the amount of air which is exiting the vent. The need for such devices is commonly seen in conjunction with the use of residential central heating or cooling systems, where it is desirable to provide an attractive vent to direct the rising air stream.
As the air streams which course through floor vents contain to some limited degree certain amounts of debris, lint, and other contamination, vents typically accumulate over time such dirt or contamination. This dirt must be removed to improve the visual appearance of the floor vent, as well as to restore the airflow to the original design conditions.
Vent devices of the general character described above which provide the some of the aforementioned desired capabilities have heretofore been proposed. Those of which I am aware are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 34,783 issued Mar. 25, 1862 to Sawyer for IMPROVEMENT IN HOT-AIR REGISTERS; 1,691,285 issued Nov. 13, 1928 to Helms for HEAT REGISTER AND CUT-OFF FOR AIR HEATING SYSTEMS; 3,938,430 issued Feb. 17, 1976 to Koppang for AIR VENTS; 4,056,048 issued Nov. 1, 1977 to Milroy for EMERGENCY VENTILATION MEANS FOR CONFINED LIVESTOCK AREAS; 4,401,260 issued Aug. 30, 1983 to Grant for SELF-OPERATED AIR REGISTER DAMPER; 4,413,774 issued Nov. 8, 1983 to Grant for DIRECT DRIVE AIR REGISTER DAMPER; 4,417,687 issued Nov. 29, 1983 to Grant for MULTI-BLADE AUTOMATIC AIR REGISTER DAMPER; 4,452,391 issued Jun. 5, 1984 to Chow for AIR REGULATING DEVICE;
For the most part, the patent documents identified in the preceding paragraph disclose devices which include one or more louver portions, to which either manually adjustable or automatically adjusting devices are appended. Koppang, U.S. Pat. 3,938,430, discloses a device believed to be the closest to the present invention; however, his device utilizes opposing directional dampers, rather than parallel operating louvers as in the present invention. Further, his actuator is integrally molded with one of the louvers, rather than being independently operated as is the thumbwheel of the present invention. Also, his actuator protrudes above the top of the grill, thus exposing it to accidental breakage underfoot. Nor does his vent have centering wedges to help secure the vent within an opening.
Other prior art includes a variety of devices, many of which include a complicated assembly of components for operation. Such devices create an inherently unreliable operation the lifetime of a floor vent. Over time, various automatic machinery would likely deteriorate, thus necessitating repairs to maintain an efficiently operating air system.
Another common deficiency of the heretofore available floor vents is the absence of a variety of choices of colors in a vent, unless resort is had to painting the vent. The advantage of a vent readily available to be selected from a variety of colors to match a home or business color scheme is important and self-evident.